


A Christmas Crush

by dwarvenshield



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Christmas, Christmas at the Weasleys, Christmas fic, Crush at First Sight, Crushing, F/M, Family fun, Hufflepuff!Reader - Freeform, Reader-Insert, implied female!reader, some sweeeet fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-11-08 19:50:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,478
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17987531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dwarvenshield/pseuds/dwarvenshield
Summary: After being invited by the Weasleys to stay with them for Christmas, you find yourself becoming close with a certain dragonologist.





	1. Christmas at the Weasleys

**Author's Note:**

> Right, so I found this story that I wrote during Christmas and totally forgot about it. It is a tad bit late from the appropriate season :D but I think Charlie Weasley fluff of any kind is always appropriate.  
> Side-note: the Charlie I've written is not based on the Hogwarts Mystery character.  
> Another side-note: This is not properly proof-read and I'm a bit rusty. Apologies.
> 
> This will be a mini-series, because I've already written a second part to it. Cheers and hope you like it!

Here you were, standing in front of the Burrow with an over-night bag slung over your shoulder. The cold wind was blowing across the yard, causing you to pull up your scarf with your right hand to cover your bare neck. It wouldn’t do for you to get sick during the festive season. Your left hand was occupied with an overflowing tote bag filled with presents for the family living in the wonky-shaped house. It was Christmas after all, and you were about to spend it with the loveliest of families, which included two of your very good friends: Fred and George Weasley.                     

It had been an ordinary day in October when you caught the twins bickering with their brother, Percy. As you had often been thought of as an innocent person, you had wielded your virtuous nature into a tool to end fights. You were in the same year as Percy, so you had the courage to go talk to them. With your Hufflepuff robes swishing, you went to inquire what they were arguing about. With one glance at your doe-like eyes, the brothers immediately went silent and adjusted their robes.

                      “Just knocking some sense into my brothers, is all, [Y/N]," said Percy, sighing when he saw you raise your brow in amusement.

                      “Now, now, Perce. I’m sure they’re in their senses. Right, Fred?” you said while glancing at the closest twin next to you. You saw Fred’s eyes widen from your ability to tell the twins apart, which George immediately mirrored. Quickly, their expressions turned into smirks and Fred replied with, “Absolutely!”

                      “Cool, cool,” you acknowledged and turned to Percy again. “I’ll see you in the court yard with Samson, right?” When he nodded, you left the dazzled boys by themselves. Easy to say, it did not take the twins long to approach you after that, as they were curious and amazed at your person. Thus, began an awesome friendship between the three of you, which led you here, two years later, outside of their house on Christmas break of your 7th year. You were about to meet the entire Weasley clan, as the three Weasleys had told you of their mum insisting on the arrival of the two eldest Weasleys – Bill the curse-breaker and Charlie the dragonologist.

 With a knack for Herbology and all living things, you were more intrigued by the second eldest, yet you were eager to meet them both. “Oi, [Y/N]’s here!” you heard someone shout from above, and immediately the door opened with an exasperated woman looking at you. You stepped forward and walked towards the mother of the Weasleys. Just as you were about to introduce yourself, you felt the air get knocked out of you body by the sheer force of a hug from the robust woman.

“It’s wonderful to have you here, my dear! Welcome! The boys have told me all about you!” Mrs. Weasley blabbered on.

“Well, I hope they left room for me to say something about myself," you said, hoping the light-hearted joke would be well received.

 Mrs. Weasley let out a laugh, saying “Oh, she’s a funny one! Arthur, this one’s a funny one!” Without further a-do, you were practically dragged over the threshold and into the warmth of the Weasley home. It was a cold Christmas Eve, so it was evidently a reason to have a lovely roaring fire burning in the living room. You spotted Mr. Weasley inspecting a rubber duck at the dinner table, and the two older looking Weasleys sitting by the fireplace. Their mother was already in full swing with the introductions by pulling you closer to where the two eldest were sitting. She introduced you to the eldest, Bill, by saying, “Bill, this is the dear [Y/N] who the boys have been talking about. [Y/N], this is my eldest, Bill.” You looked up at the tall ginger man with a few slashes across his quite handsome face. As he shook your hand, a sweet smile adorned his features. “Nice to meet you," he says.

“And you, Bill. I can’t believe I’m seeing the infamous Weasley curse-breaker with my very own eyes," you tell him sincerely, chuckling at the slight blush that spreads across his cheeks.

“Would you like some eggnog?," he gestures to the jug on the coffee table, trying to divert the attention away from himself.

“I just might, but maybe later, yeah?” you say, to which Bill nods.

“How lovely," Mrs. Weasley continues after following your conversation, “now then, here’s—”. Mrs. Weasley went to introduce you to her other son, when something was heard exploding in the kitchen. “Oh, Christ!”, she curses and runs off to salvage the Christmas dinner. You were left staring at her doing her magic to save the kitchen with your hand extended to the second eldest Weasley. You jump a bit when you feel a calloused hand grab yours, and your head turns to face the slightly shorter one of the two Weasley men.

“Hi, I believe my mother was about to introduce me – I’m Charlie,” he says with a sweet voice that tickles your eardrums in a pleasant way as you stare at his face. It quickly dawns on you that you had completely forgotten what he just said, so you clear your throat and ask, “Come again?” to which he repeats his name.

“Oh, yes, Charlie!” you exclaim while shaking his hand enthusiastically. “Hi, I’m [Y/N]. You’re the dragonologist, right?” You let go of his hand and stay close to him to hear him. He chuckles at your question and replies with a warm smile.

“Why yes, that’s me.” As Charlie had only arrived from Romania a few hours ago, he was not up to speed on how you had befriended the family ~~and how someone so beautiful could have crossed paths with him on Christmas.~~ Before he gets the chance to ask, the two of them hear a rumble from the staircase: soon enough, four redheads sprint to where you stand.

“[Y/N]! You came!” the Weasley twins shout in unison and engulf you into a massive hug. After letting go, you spot Percy behind them, twiddling his thumbs.

“Hey, Perce,” you greet him, and he shyly turns to look at you.

“Hey, [Y/N]. Merry Christmas,” he says. Just then it dawns on you – you’ve completely forgotten to wish everyone the season’s greetings.

“Ah, yes, indeed! Merry Christmas to all!" you gasp and giggle a little when you hear the twins laugh at your shocked face. Beside Percy, you spot the only girl of the family, Ginny. The girl stares at you with sparkling eyes, waiting to hug you. You step towards her and wrap your arms around her. Before the Autumn term, you wouldn’t have known her as anything other than the Weasley boys’ sister. However, she had ran into you in the hallway when you were having a panic attack after a potion’s lesson. She had sat by you, saying soothing mantras and waiting with you until the attack passed. Since then, you had been forever grateful for this kind girl and you often sneaked her salted caramel cookies from the kitchens.

“Hey, Ginny," you say into her neck, and you hear her mumble a greeting into yours. Her hair smelled like vanilla, which tickled your senses delightfully. You stay like that for a while, until you hear the twins shuffling awkwardly beside the two of you. After letting go, you go to ruffle her hair out of habit and due to being older than her. She sticks her tongue out in reply, which makes you laugh. Turning to your left, you spot Mr. Weasley waiting to introduce himself.

“Hello there, and welcome to our home," he says while shaking your hand with vigour and great enthusiasm. When you expect him to let go, he pulls you slightly closer to talk to you in a hushed voice. “I’ve heard from the boys that you have a bit of a non-magical background. If you wouldn’t mind too much, I’d like to ask you a few questions about the functions of some muggle objects.”

You chuckle, while glancing at the rubber duck tucked in the breast pocket of his blazer. “I’ll tell you all about them. Perhaps after dinner sometime?” you ask, and you smile at the excitement in his eyes.

“Oh splendid! That would be wonderful!” he exclaims, and turns away to go gather the muggle objects. Soon, the Weasley family, along with you, Harry and Hermione are seated at the dining table feasting on a wonderful Christmas dinner. Turns out Mrs. Weasley’s spludderknucket pudding had spluttered a tad too much, which had caused the slight explosion. Before dinner, you had also greeted Ron and his friends, them seeming delighted to be in your presence. The dining table was bustling with discussion with you leading the latest conversation on the differences between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff.

   “So, you _honestly_ think Hufflepuff is the best house in Hogwarts?” George asks in a teasing tone, slightly chuckling at the irony of everyone, aside from you, being sorted into Gryffindor.

You smile sheepishly, trying to justify your opinion. “I don’t think _any_ house is the best, because it is all up to a person’s interpretation. However, in my personal experience, Hufflepuff has been fantastic and even other houses have benefitted by having friends from Hufflepuff. Isn’t that right, Ginny?” you say, while laughing at the twins’ and Percy’s confused faces.

Ginny smiles proudly, and says, “Definitely. [Y/N] treats me every now and then with delicious salted caramel biscuits from the kitchens.” Both the parents and the two eldest Weasleys laugh at Percy’s shocked face at this breach of school rules, and Charlie tries not to laugh when taking a sip from his goblet.  

“But that’s against the rules! No one is to enter the school kitchens!” Percy says aghast. You smirk at his reaction, saying that it’s not you who has entered the kitchens.

“Having house elves as friends has its perks,” you say, and Hermione looks at you with adoration. _I’m definitely going to ask her to join SPEW_ , she thinks to herself. The conversation lulls for a moment, until Mr. Weasley can’t help but ask you about the function of a rubber duck.

“Well, it’s just a squeaky toy that parents like to put in the baths of their children," you explain, watching the slowly arising look of understanding on Mr. Weasley’s face.

“Ah, so it’s merely for entertainment purposes?” he clarifies.

“Yes. You should take it with you the next time you have a bath," you say, and with that the entire table erupts into laughter. Mr. Weasley laughs the most, assuring you that he definitely shall. While everyone laughs, you feel eyes on you, and you turn to see Charlie looking at you. He quickly diverts his gaze and turns to take another sip from his goblet.

After an hour’s conversation with Mr. Weasley about the wonders of a blender, pencils and telephones, you collapse onto the sofa, next to none other than Charlie and Bill. The twins had been long excused to go work on a new prototype inspired by your conversations at the dinner table. Ginny, Ron, Harry and Hermione had gone outside to make snowmen after dinner, and now they were warming themselves up upstairs.

“Dad talked your ear off then?” Charlie asks, and chuckled at your tired grin.

“Yeah, I never thought muggle things would be that interesting. Of course, I did always find magical objects fascinating, so each to their own, I think." Charlie nods in agreement, slightly in awe at your reflection and understanding towards his father’s obsession with muggles. Bill led the conversation from there, asking about you and your interests. Charlie occasionally engaged, but he was more interested in getting to know you better and listening to your honeyed voice. He found out that you were just three years younger than him, even though your thoughts and opinions were very sophisticated, and your level of intellect seemed to exceed his. Of course, he realised that he couldn’t possibly hit on his brothers’ friend, no matter how smart and attractive he thought you were. Still, he wanted to enjoy the time he could spend listening to you.

As Charlie had been so lost in his thoughts, he was only brought back into reality with your question about his job. “So, what’s it like being a dragonologist?” As Charlie starts explaining, you listen intently and ask questions in between. While the two of you engage in a full-fledged conversation, you don’t notice time pass by and that it is well past midnight. Bill had left an hour ago, and with his exit he turned off all the lights. The only light left streams dimly from the slowly dying fire and the Christmas tree next to the sofa, and you adore the way the dim lighting makes the moment slightly magical and unearthly. The glow from the fire adorns Charlie’s face, making his face a tad bit angelic. You swear you’ve never felt so connected to another person and you silently wish the moment would never end.

“Wow, you applied to the Magical Academy of Healing? What are you planning on specialising in?” Charlie asks with fire practically burning in his hazel eyes, which makes them sparkle.

“I want to help minds, be that human or animal. That’s why I’m thinking of becoming a Mind Healer. It just fits my interests while giving me the flexibility to choose my patients and such,” you explain excitedly, not realising that you have moved closer to Charlie. The Weasley notices of course, his cheeks burning a bit, but you take that for being so close to the fire.

“Now _that_ is fascinating. Is that why you asked about dragons?” he inquires, a curiosity burning in his gaze that slightly challenges you. You look back at him with a fierce gaze and reply to his question.

“Yeah, I think it would be cool to work with dragons, because I’ve read that that they are so complex and human-like. Also, the fact that there are so many troubled dragons out there, poor things being hunted and all, makes me want to help them. Like in your sanctuary! It would be so cool to work in one like it.”

Your interest in dragons is basically it for Charlie: he is so attracted to you, and he swears that if you touched him now, he would turn into putty in your hands. He doesn’t say anything on the matter, because he wants to remain respectable in your eyes, and because he’s afraid you don’t feel the same. However, before he can stop himself, he’s already suggesting an outrageous proposition that would definitely _not_ give his violently beating heart a break.

“Uh, if you want, I could ask the sanctuary if they take you as an intern or as a trainee. Only if you want, that is.” His voice slightly stutters, and he hopes you don’t notice it or the way his cheeks quite literally turn into tomatoes. He’s practically asking you if he could write to you AND for you to live at the sanctuary. Near him. _Merlin_ , Charlie thinks to himself. _I did not think this through_. He tries to tune down his feelings, knowing how inappropriate they are, but he cannot help but love the way you grin at him.

“Yes, yes, that would be amazing!” you say while wrapping your arms around him. Before he would literally melt, Charlie feels you break away just as quick as you hugged him, and he watches you ramble on about the possibility of being an intern during the summer and continuing during the end of your studies. He patiently waits for you to finish, after which he tells you with a toothy smile that he will do it when he returns on Boxing Day.

Turning to the clock, he states that it’s already late as the hands point to quarter to one. The two of you rise at the same time and turn to quite climb up the stairs to your respective rooms. At the door of Ginny’s room, in which you were going to sleep in, Charlie turns to bid you a hushed goodnight. Maybe it’s from the magic that you felt, or the slight kick of alcohol from the eggnog that the twins spiked, that you feel the courage to plant a kiss on his cheek. Before you regret your decision, you quickly open the door and shut it behind you. Little do you know, Charlie stays there for a good while touching his left cheek and feeling his heart racing in his chest. You, in turn, find yourself wishing that you would’ve directed your kiss somewhere else, but you drown those thoughts in the fresh linen of your cot.

 

 


	2. A Day of Snow and Fun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is Christmas morning, and the family along with their guests share their presents. Everyone is taken aback by [Y/N]'s generosity and family history, and Charlie finds his interests and feelings growing. After a victorious snowball fight, [Y/N] turns the face the facts and their feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got so excited that I had to post this. Might be a bit messy - I'll fix it up later. 
> 
> [Y/E/C] = your eye colour

It was four past seven in the morning, when you woke up to Hermione shaking you awake. “Hey, [Y/N], it’s Christmas morning! Wake up!” You and she had been placed in Ginny’s room, which was nice. You grumbled a bit before rubbing your eyes to shake off the sleep. You hadn’t slept much due to your late-night conversation with Charlie. _Charlie_. You were wide awake now, as you felt wave of regret flow through you. Darn it, you had kissed Charlie on the cheek last night! Even though you barely knew him and didn’t even know if he liked you that way! You groan and bury your face into your pillow, attempting to hide from reality. _Why why, oh why did I have to do that? Why,why,why_ —smack! Ginny flings her pillow at you and demands that you get up.

“It’s Christmas morning! We’ve got to go open the presents!” she cries, excitement laced in her voice. With that, you slowly crawl out of your very comfy cot and pull on some woolly socks in the Hufflepuff colours. Obviously. Ginny and Hermione have already gone downstairs, and you hear excited chatter echoing from the living room. Before you exit the room, you remember your tote bag with the presents, and quickly count them to make sure you had a present for everyone. At last, you enter the living room, and everyone turns to wish you a happy Christmas. You feel a pair of eyes on you, but you avoid them at all costs as you know that it could only be Charlie. Your embarrassment still hadn’t passed, and so you join Fred and George on the floor next to the large bookshelf.

And so, the giving of presents began. Dear Mrs. Weasley had knitted everyone a sweater with their initial. You fell absolutely in love with yours, as your initial was adorned with gold accents and the rest of the sweater was black and yellow, like your house colours. You quickly put it on, and Fred teases you for having a matching sweater and socks. You just show your tongue to him.

Aside from the sweater, you got some puking pastilles from the twins, to which you commented “I’ll never use these!” George merely smirked and said, “You never know, princess.” Ginny had gifted you salted caramel cookies – you were delighted to receive them, and you felt like you had a special bond with her as the cookies had become a thing between the two of you.

After everyone had given their gifts, you slowly started to speak up, while looking at the people around you. “I actually… Um, have something for all of you as well.” A low hush and an appreciate gasp were heard, as everyone was amazed at your generosity. You weren’t from a wealthy family, but you saw it fit to spend your allowance to get everyone something. “I do apologise, they’re all muggle things so nothing too extravagant, but I do hope you enjoy them.”

Firstly, you give Hermione a journal; Fred a Rubix cube; George a cup of slime and Ginny a pair of sports gloves with a grip. You also gift the twins a copy of “20 Classic Magic Tricks: A guide by J.D. Harrison”, which they eagerly flip through with hungry eyes. Harry gets a handmade deck of cards, Ron a travel-sized chessboard, and Percy a pocket knife. “What do I do with this?” Percy asks, but once you show him how it works, he cannot stop fiddling with it.

 To Mrs. Weasley – “Call me Molly, please!” – you give a handmade mug that changes colour when a hot beverage is poured into it, and Mr. Weasley – “Just Arthur, poppet” – a pair of binoculars. Mr. Weasley immediately goes out the door to try them out, leaping with joy. You pass a parcel to Bill, which he opens, only to reveal a bracelet with a horseshoe and a four-leafed clover charm. “They’re considered lucky charms in the Muggle world and are even said to protect the wearer,” you explain to the confused wizard. After hearing that, he fastens it on his wrist and fingers them with awe.

“Last by not least, uh… Charlie,” you say and cannot find the courage to look at him, so you slide him his parcel. You hear him tearing through the wrapping, until he is silent again. That is when you finally look up at him, finding his gaze fixed on you. He toys with the metal object and looks at you with a quizzical brow. “It’s a dog whistle, something that muggles use to get their dog’s attention. I read from a magazine that a dog whistle can work on any animal with excellent hearing, so I thought you could try it out on the dragons at the sanctuary.”

Your thoughtfulness leaves him completely speechless, and he strokes the whistle gently to clear his thoughts. Before he can say anything, Molly tells everyone to thank you heartily, so everyone rushes to you to give you their thanks. After about a thousand hugs, and a really long one from Molly – who is has big fat tears rolling down her cheeks because of the sentiment – the path has been cleared for Charlie to thank you. Everyone watches him slowly move towards you and give you a hug. You breathe in his scent; it’s musky with hints of citrus, and it drives you to tighten your embrace. He’s soft, yet you can feel his toned muscles from all the hard work of training dragons. You never wanted to let go of him, but the moment is short-lived: Fred comes and pulls you away from the hug to talk to you about the book you gave them. You turn to look at Charlie and he offers you a warm smile, which you return.

While you converse with Fred and George about the book, Molly has made breakfast for everyone and is calling everyone to eat. You go to sit between Fred and Ginny, and just as your hand grabs an apple on the tray in front of you, you feel a hand land on top of yours for a brief moment. You look up, and it is none other than Charlie – who just so happens to sit across from you. He quickly pulls his hand away, muttering a small “sorry”. His gesture stirs something inside of you, and you quip, “An apple a day keeps the healer away,” and take a bite of the red apple with a sheepish grin. “Or at least, that’s what my mum says.” You watch Charlies mouth curve into a beautiful smile, and you can see the amusement behind his hazel eyes. You have to admit, he is absolutely breath-taking. You ‘d never tell him that, though.

Your thoughts are interrupted by Molly, as she asks you about your family. “So tell us about your family, dear. That’s something the boys haven’t really told us much about.”

“Oh!” you say, surprised, and start twiddling your fingers. “Well, my mother is a witch and my father a muggle. I have two brothers, but both of them turned out to be squibs. You could say that I am the magical baby,” you explain. Everyone lets out a murmur of surprise, as having two squibs is a rarity.

“Now that is fascinating! I’ve never heard of such a thing,” Arthur says and takes a bite of his toast. Everyone looks at you with amazement, and Charlie’s curious gaze begs you to continue.

“Yeah, it is pretty strange. My dad didn’t even know that Mum was a witch before they realised I was a witch. A bit of shock to him, but he’s accepted it.”

 You hear George practically slam his goblet down, before he exclaims, “What?! So your dad didn’t _know_ your mum was a witch? Doesn’t she practice magic around the house?” You chuckle at this, because it does sound quite odd, a witch not using her magic.

“After graduating from Hogwarts, my mum started living in the Muggle world, and she’s never really stayed in contact with the Magical world after that. All of that changed, though, when they found out about me,” you say. “I can still see her face the first time I walked in Diagon Alley with her – she looked like she was about to burst into tears any moment.”

Soon the table is filled with hushed conversations, as everyone is simply amazed by your family. For the third time, you look at Charlie. His eyes have an inviting look to them, and his gaze is comforting. You honestly wouldn’t mind staring at his face for days on end. Little do you know, he is thinking the same, as he explores your features with his eyes. He takes note of the curve of your lips and the way your lashes frame your stunning [Y/E/C] eyes. He wants – no, he _yearns_ to know more about you and he can still feel your soft lips touch his cheek. He’s noticed that during the course of the morning, you’ve avoided his gaze. _Perhaps she regrets it because she doesn’t feel the same_ , he has thought once or twice. But now, he feels lighter than before, as your eyes radiate an angelic glow, making him feel inexplicably warm inside.  

 Breakfast is over, and Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Harry run upstairs to change out of their pyjamas so that they can go outside to play Quidditch. They try to coax you as well, but you have promised to be in a snowball fight with Fred and George. The twins have been anxious to try out their snowball-throwing invention since September, and you’ve been curious about its mechanisms as well. Bill and Charlie are having a conversation, so you don’t dare to interrupt them by asking them to join the fight. They probably wouldn’t, anyway, being older than you and such.

Soon enough, you are stationed near the Weasley’s shed with a barricade of snow to keep out the snowballs that Fred and the twins’ invention, Snowble, have been throwing at you and George. The boys had a hard time choosing teams, so you had them do rock-paper-scissors to get into your team. George was ecstatic, because he hadn’t been in the same team as you for ages, it seemed to him. Fred had always hogged you as his partner in Gobstones and in Slap, a muggle card game you’d taught them. “You giving up yet, Freddie?” you shouted, readying a snowball as you shout. The truth is, Snowble had proven to be quite successful, and you had sensed that George wanted to be on the opposite team to test it out. So, by losing, you could get them to switch sides.

Your plan was not going to work though, because at that very moment, you hear Bill shouting, “We’re joining! Charlie goes with Fred!” You hear Fred shout in victory, and George curses beside you.

You look at him confused, and George mutters, “Charlie is a champion at this. He was a seeker, so he’s had his fair share of practicing with balls.” Your twisted mind turns what he says into something different, and you start laughing like a madman. “What?” George asks, and you squeak “balls”, before laughing again. George joins in on your laughter, and soon Bill finds you both clutching your stomachs while laughing like crazy.  

The battle once again commences, and snowballs start flying back and forth. When you notice a decrease of snowballs from the opposing side and hear a faint “Damn!”, you put two and two together and whisper excitedly to Bill, “Snowble must have jammed! Let’s attack!” Before he can respond, you clutch your readymade snowballs and run onto the battlefield. You hear Charlie and Fred arguing, and you think to yourself, _this is perfect. They will never guess what’s about to happen_. You slow down your pace, and carefully walk towards their fortress. Once you catch a glimpse of them, you aim, and expertly throw the snowball towards Fred. It hits him straight in the chest.

“Score!” you shout – which was a mistake. Charlie comes out of the fortress with a fresh batch of snowballs. _Oh, it’s on_. You throw balls back and forth, and you find yourself in acrobatic positions you’ve never tried before. Anything to dodge that snowball. Both of you hear Fred shout “Avenge me!”, and Charlie proceeds to charge towards you. With a snowball in his hand, he’s ready to throw at you when Bill and George appear at your side. It’s amazing how Bill and George work together, but you’re even more amazed at Charlie’s skill to dodge the shower of snowballs. You just stand there and observe his movements, the way his body is slick yet sly. He must have learned all that when training dragons.

In an instant, both Bill and George are defeated, and you are left to defy the rule of Charlie. He smirks at you and keeps on throwing his last snowball in the air and catching it in a painfully slow way. “Any last words?” he teases you with his sultry voice. You look towards Bill and George, who urge you to act wisely. You start to think, _two can play at this game_ , and you do something very daring. For the sake of winning.

“You look _really_ handsome,” you say in an adoring voice exuding raw emotion and sincerity. Just as you expect, Charlie is thrown off his balance and drops his last snowball; and with that, SPLAT! You hit him right in the middle of his chest. Bill and George start hollering loudly and run to high-five you. The look on Charlie’s face is priceless – he looks like a puppy who got denied his treat. Absolutely priceless. To maintain the effect, you blow him a kiss mockingly, and turn to celebrate with the boys.

You hear Molly call everyone in for hot chocolate, and so you start to walk towards the house with Bill and George discussing your bravery and “badass skills” and how you “knocked Charlie off his high-horse”. Once inside, George announces to the rest of the family, “[Y/N]’s the new champion of snowball fights!” and everyone turns to cheer.

“You actually beat Charlie?” Ron asks with amazement, to which you nod. “How?!”

“By playing a wicked game,” Charlie answers for me as he steps inside and removes his scarf.

“There’s nothing wicked about a fool-proof strategy,” you tease, and he turns to look at you with bewilderment in his eyes.

“Are you calling me a fool?” he asks, and you can tell that he is amused. The smirk that is plastered on his face prompts you to agree. “Well,” he continues, “at least I’m a _really handsome_ fool.” Ron, who had been following your conversation was absolutely confused, and he turned even more confused by your reddened cheeks. But Fred, who had just stepped in and heard the last of your conversation, let out a loud laugh.

“That was absolutely bonkers, but ingenious, [Y/N]! Ingenious!” he exclaims while putting Snowble aside. Charlie was still looking at you with that smirk on his face, and his eyes seemed ten times brighter now. He was so amused by the slight traces of embarrassment evident on your face. He felt he could read your thoughts just by looking at you, but he never could have guessed how true your statement was. He is handsome, but the fool here was you, because you had exposed too much to him. He was not to know of your growing feelings towards him, as you were not sure if they were permanent and if you’d ever see him again. Sure, he was going to ask his sanctuary about an internship for you, but it’s not like you would get it.

_Charlie Weasley would only have to remain as my temporary Christmas crush._


End file.
